More Kids Practicing Yoga

More Kids Practicing Yoga

Yoga: It's said to be the fastest-growing sport in America, with 20 million people practicing. But the latest trend among yogis is that an increasing number of practitioners are pint sized.

Kids – from newborns to teenagers – are learning the terms down dog, sun salutation and more in kids-only yoga studios and even in their classrooms. It's also one of the only non-competitive sports available.

"More practitioners and more parents are becoming aware of the benefits of yoga and seeing their kids can benefit too," said Liz Eustace, CEO of Alignyo, an online yoga community with a newsletter devoted to all things yoga. "The things that benefit an adult will also benefit a child. Stress reduction, mind- body connection, physical strength – these are things that benefit kids as well as adults."

"[Kids and adult classes are] very different, but the foundation is always the same. There's still the mind-body connection that is the foundation of all yoga," said Eustace. "But what's great is there's a ton of creativity with kids yoga, like meowing like a cat, barking in downward dog or hissing like a cobra. There's an incredible amount of creativity and playfulness within the foundation of yoga. And it's these kids moving in such a creative and conscious way that makes it such a fun practice for children to get involved with."

Experts say parents should do their research before signing their kids up for a yoga program. A good place to start is the Yoga Alliance web site, where parents can search for a instructor that's been trained in children's yoga. The voluntary standards put forth by Yoga Alliance require 95 hours of training to become registered.